How to Use a Rope Dart

Written by christopher michael

Share

Tweet

Share

Pin

Email

The rope dart is a martial arts weapon that takes time to master. (Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images)

The rope dart is an exotic and beautiful martial arts weapon that is extremely difficult to master. It consists of over ten feet of rope, or cloth, with a 1-pound dart attached to one end. The dart is dressed with a square piece of cloth, making the dart difficult to see at high speeds. The rope is handled in such a manner that the dart can be thrown, punched or kicked at an opponent with a high rate of speed. The target can be at a considerable distance and the dart should return to you after impact.

Skill level:

Challenging

Other People Are Reading

Instructions

Kicks

1

Hold the dart-less end of the rope in your left hand and feed the rope through your right hand. Bend your elbows at 90 degrees while holding your hands in front of you about waist height.

2

Begin to swing the dart in a propeller motion off the right side of your body. The dart should go forward, in front of your body, over your head and return behind your body near your feet. Keep the dart in motion, moving your right hand like you would a skipping rope.

3

Raise your right foot into the air and move it parallel to the ground with your toes pointed away from your body. Insert your foot into the propeller-rope half way between your hand and the rope.

4

Catch the rope with the inside of your foot. As the slack of the rope catches, kick your leg straight out in front of your body toward the target to "kick" the dart. Remove your foot quickly to continue swinging the dart.

5

Reverse the sides of your body and repeat steps one through four to kick the dart with your left foot.

Pulls

1

Start the propeller motion with the dart. Hold the dart-less end in one hand and feed the rope through the other hand while keeping your hands about shoulder-width apart. The propeller can be in front of you or to the side.

2

Use your jump-rope-motion hand to fling the weighted dart end at the target.

3

Loosen your grip on the jump-rope-motion hand while holding tight to the dart-less end with your other hand. Let the rope slide through the motion hand as your hands come together. The dart will fling at the target while you elongate the rope to give it further distance and speed.

4

Pull the dart-less end away from the jump-rope-motion hand as the dart reaches its target. Let the rope slide through the motion hand. Clamp down on the rope with the motion hand after enough rope has slipped through and then continue to swing the dart in a propeller motion

Throws

1

Hold the dart-less end in one hand, and the dart itself in your throwing hand. Hold the dart at the bottom, where the dart meets the rope.

2

Throw the dart at the target. Upon release, keep your fingers curled so you do not lose control of the rope. Let the rope slide easily through your throw hand as the dart sails towards the target.

3

Clamp down with your throw hand when the dart reaches its target. Pull the rope slack and gain centripetal control of the dart to start the propeller motion as you pull the dart back towards you. Move your throw hand in the manner of a skipping rope to keep the dart in motion.

Tips and warnings

You can use any part of your body to propel the dart much like the kick is described above.

When practicing with the rope dart, you should not use a weaponized dart.